---
title: altercation — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «altercation» in the school dictionary: An altercation is a noisy argument or small fight between people, usually in public. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# altercation

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** altercation, It, reporters, report, brief altercation, headteacher · **What happens:** be, use, scuffle, not want, give, say · **To what, where:** noisy argument, polite word, details, place, playground, Police · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«altercation» in the school dictionary: its 2 meanings for a pupil and its 7 examples, every sentence parsed by Mova itself — its syntax tree, a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies, and its pragmatics clause by clause. The word in the dictionary, with its sense in the lessons: [altercation in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/altercation.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: formal — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
An altercation is a noisy argument or small fight between people, usually in public.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:m1:1
# text = An altercation is a noisy argument or small fight between people, usually in public.
1	An	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	noisy	noisy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	argument	argument	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
8	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	fight	fight	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	_
10	between	between	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
13	usually	usually	ADV	RB	_	15	advmod	_	_
14	in	in	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	public	public	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a altercation | a noisy argument or small fight between people |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **be** |  | a altercation *not said here* |  |  |  |  | usually *property* | tree rules |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

## Meaning 2 {#m2}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: formal, news and police — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is a polite word reporters and police use for a fight or scuffle when they do not want to give details.

<!-- fold The tree, 22 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:m2:1
# text = It is a polite word reporters and police use for a fight or scuffle when they do not want to give details.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	polite	polite	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	reporters	reporter	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	nsubj	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	police	police	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	conj	_	_
9	use	use	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
10	for	for	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	fight	fight	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obl	_	_
13	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	scuffle	scuffle	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	conj	_	_
15	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	19	mark	_	_
16	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	19	nsubj	_	_
17	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	19	aux	_	_
18	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	19	advmod	_	_
19	want	want	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	14	advcl	_	_
20	to	to	PART	TO	_	21	mark	_	_
21	give	give	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	19	xcomp	_	_
22	details	detail	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	21	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | It | a polite word |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **use** | present | reporters and police | a polite word *not said here* |  |  |  | for a fight | vn use-105.1 «NP V NP PP.predicate»: agent=Agent word=Theme for fight=Eventuality |
| 3 | **scuffle** | infinitive | reporters and police *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn battle-36.4 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **not** **want** | present · do-support | reporters *= reporter* |  |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Pivot clause=Theme |
| 5 | **give** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | reporters *= reporter* *not said here* | details |  |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent detail=Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
There was an altercation between two fans outside the stadium.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:x1:1
# text = There was an altercation between two fans outside the stadium.
1	There	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	2	expl	_	_
2	was	be	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
5	between	between	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	7	nummod	_	_
7	fans	fan	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod	_	_
8	outside	outside	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	stadium	stadium	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **be** | past | a altercation between two fans outside the stadium |  |  | there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The report said a brief altercation took place in the playground.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:x2:1
# text = The report said a brief altercation took place in the playground.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	report	report	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	said	say	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	brief	brief	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
7	took	take	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	ccomp	_	_
8	place	place	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	playground	playground	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | past | the report |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **take** | past | a brief altercation | place |  | the playground |  |  | vn fit-54.3 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent place=Value in playground=Location |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Police were called after a verbal altercation in the car park.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:x3:1
# text = Police were called after a verbal altercation in the car park.
1	Police	police	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	after	after	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	verbal	verbal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	car	car	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	park	park	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **call** | past · passive |  | Police |  |  | after a verbal altercation in the car park |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: subject=Recipient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The headteacher wrote that both boys were involved in the altercation.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:x4:1
# text = The headteacher wrote that both boys were involved in the altercation.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	headteacher	headteacher	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	wrote	write	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
5	both	both	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	6	det	_	_
6	boys	boy	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	nsubj	_	_
7	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
8	involved	involved	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	ccomp	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **write** | past | the headteacher |  |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is** | past | both boys |  |  | the altercation |  | involved *property* | tree rules |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A physical altercation broke out at the bus stop.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:x5:1
# text = A physical altercation broke out at the bus stop.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	physical	physical	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	broke	break	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	out	out	ADP	RP	_	4	compound:prt	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	bus	bus	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	stop	stop	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **break out** | past | a physical altercation |  |  | the bus stop |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme at stop=Location |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nobody was hurt in the altercation.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:x6:1
# text = Nobody was hurt in the altercation.
1	Nobody	nobody	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Neg	3	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	hurt	hurt	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hurt** | past · passive |  | Nobody |  | the altercation |  |  | vn hurt-40.8.3-2 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The players had an altercation with the referee.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:altercation:x7:1
# text = The players had an altercation with the referee.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	players	player	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	altercation	altercation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	referee	referee	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | the players | a altercation |  |  |  | with the referee | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent altercation=Patient |

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**Text:** the school dictionary of Mova's schools (`world/data/dictionary-schools/`), written for Mova. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each meaning and example read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

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